UNDRR ROAMC: Unifying climate risk data at the country level

Context

Vulnerable countries keep facing disproportional socio-economic and financial risks from continuously intensifying climate impacts. In a changing climate, these impacts pose significant challenges to both physical infrastructure and built environment (assets), as well as the population, making them more at-risk. Due to this complex and systemic nature of climate and disaster risks, managing and reducing them should be done in a more comprehensive manner. 

A more comprehensive climate and disaster risk management approach is anchored on a unified climate risk data.  A quantitative approach to the understanding of (climate and disaster) risks usually involve disaster risk models. But these models have traditionally focused on analyzing property and crop damages to develop insurance related products. In recent years however, risk modelers are integrating livelihoods impacts, adaptive capacity, long-term impacts on poverty, and climate adaptation options. These advancements have a high potential to inform global discussions on loss and damage. 

Despite progresses in remote sensing, and an increasing availability of meteorological and climatic data, one of the challenges is the globally consistent assessment of physical climate risks. For instance, exposure data are either unavailable or restricted to single countries or regions. To address this, there is a need to unify type, format and standards of data required as well as securing their access by national and international stakeholders

Session Objectives

• Explore the value and challenges of unifying climate and disaster risk data, developing climate risk profiles and the experience and lessons of countries and cities in the LAC region. 
• Discuss the possibilities of leveraging on new technological solutions with climate change at the center for developing national climate adaptation and disaster risk reduction strategies avert, minimize (reduce) and address (manage) risks and losses and damages. 
• Explore what data, types and standards are required for appropriate monitoring, in line with what countries agreed on the Sendai Framework, and what barriers exist in terms of access and quality. 
• Discuss the opportunities that adequate climate risk data collection can unlock for states and cities to access global climate finance. 

The session will contribute to the Plan of Action of the Technical Expert Group on Comprehensive Risk Management (TEG-CRM), based on the mandate of the Warsaw International Mechanism (WIM) in promoting comprehensive risk management for avert, minimize, and address residual risks and unavoidable climate change impacts.

Discussants will reflect on actionable recommendations for further engagement. Discussion outcomes will be captured in a summary document and reported to the TEG-CRM. 

 

 

 

Agenda

Moderator -- Alvaro Rojas, Project associate MCII

Introductions

• Welcome Remarks
• Comprehensive Risk Management (and the work of the TEG-CRM)

Sönke Kreft 

Executive Director MCII

MCII

Setting the Scene

• The importance of Unifying Climate Risk Data
• Catalyzing technical support to countries through a comprehensive climate and disaster risk management approach (including the importance of data)

David Bresch

Professor for Weather and Climate Risks

ETH Zurich

Carlos Uribe

Risk Knowledge Officer

UNDRR Regional Office for the Americas and the Caribbean

Testimonials

Brief interventions followed by moderated discussions

• Urban areas
• National level
• Regional level
• Gender

Input round 

Contribution from speakers

Moderated discussion

Moderator to ask follow-through Qs and/or connect the experiences shared by the speakers

Armando Calidonio

Mayor San Pedro Sula -Honduras

Bridgid Annisette-George

Speaker of House of Representatives - Trinidad and Tobago

Victor Cardenas

Climate Risk Management expert - Mexico

Paola Vega

Member of the Legislative Assembly - Costa Rica

From Climate Risk Data to Climate Finance

• Economics of Climate Adaptation in San Pedro Sula, Honduras
• Climate risk data for unlocking climate finance

Maxime Souvignet

Project manager

MCII/UNU-EHS

Annette Detken

Head of InsuRsilience Solutions Fund Management; Climate Risk Analysis Lead

Q&A

Reflections from TEG-CRM Champion

Le-Anne Roper (TBD)

Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation - Jamaica

Key considerations from speakers

Moderator to ask each speaker to share their key takeaway message

Wrap-up and Closing Remarks

Sönke Kreft 

Executive Director MCII

MCII